Go to to download Dashlane for free, and use offer code minutephysics for 10% off Dashlane Premium! Support MinutePhysics on Patreon! This video explains Shor’s Algorithm, a way to efficiently factor large pseudoprime integers into their prime factors using a quantum computer. The quantum computation relies on the number-theoretic analysis of the factoring problem via modular arithmetic mod N (where N is the number to be factored), and finding the order or period of a random coprime number mod N. The exponential speedup comes in part from the use of the quantum fast fourier transform which achieves interference among frequencies that are not related to the period (period-finding is the goal of the QFT FFT). REFERENCES RSA Numbers (sample large numbers to try factoring) IBM on RSA Modulo Multiplication Group Tables Difference of squares factorization Euclid’s Algorithm Rational sieve for factoring General Number field Sieve Scott Aaronson blog post about Shor’s Algorithm Experimental implementation of Shor’s Algorithm (factoring 15, 21, and 35) Adiabatic Quantum Computation factoring the number 291311 Scott Aaronson course notes Shor’s Algorithm on Quantiki TLS And SSL use RSA encryption Dashlane security whitepaper Link to Patreon Supporters: MinutePhysics is on twitter - @minutephysics And facebook - Minute Physics provides an energetic and entertaining view of old and new problems in physics -- all in a minute! Created by Henry Reich